The Encounter
by snow cat demon
Summary: One cloudy afternoon and a surprising encounter.


Hey guys! I wanted to give you a story so you wouldn't think I'm dead so here's a one-shot. Enjoy!

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The ocean waves rolled in slowly but angrily. The day had been overcast and there was no possibility of the sun breaking through the clouds. It was chilly but that didn't stop a young woman from staring out into the waves.

Kagome sat on the sand hugging her knees and staring out into the ocean. She shivered lightly. She had been there for quite some time wearing just a tee shirt and a pair of jeans and it was getting late, also meaning it was getting colder. Not to mention that the longest day of the summer had long passed and the leaves had begun to fade from their summer greens to the multitude of colors seen in the autumn.

The journey to finding the shards was almost complete. There were only a few shards left to find. Koga still carried two of them in his legs but had already promised to return them when the time was right. Until then he still had his own vengeance to carry out. Naraku carried almost half of the jewel shards now and Kagome carried another portion of about the same size around her neck.

Sesshomaru had become more of an ally to the inu-taichi group than an enemy, although he did keep them on their toes by attacking every so often. That way no one left their guard down and they all got a little more practice in.

Kagura had surprised everyone by telling them who held Naraku's heart and how to find it. The problem was that she had no idea where exactly it was so they were left to wander the countryside, yet again, using crystals to locate the barrier that surrounded the demon's heart.

Kanna, well she was neither enemy nor ally.

Hakudoshi, and his pet Entei, was the only other minion of Naraku's left. He hadn't been seen in quite a while, but then again he was hardly ever seen. But when he was, it seemed like all hell broke loose. He was one person who Kagome didn't know if they would ever defeat, along with Naraku of course.

Kagome dug her toes into the sand and thought about her companions.

Shippo had grown up so much from when she first found the kitsune kit. Not only had he grown in age but also in knowledge. He had learned new tricks here and there and had gotten stronger. Soon he would no longer be a little kit but a full-grown youkai. Of course Kagome had known it was coming but now she understood a little better what her own mom felt like when she saw her and Souta grow up.

Miroku had become stronger and weaker at the same time. His kazanna had grown to the point that he could barely use it and he was left with only his staff and his holy powers to defend himself. On the other hand the relationship between Sango and him had become much stronger, which had given him the will to keep on fighting.

Sango refused to look weak in front of Miroku and rarely showed anything more than just friendship in public. However, in private, and when injuries occur, she would become one of the most affectionate people Kagome knew. Well at least until the monk tries to grope her, then she's the most violent woman that Kagome knew.

And then there was Inuyasha. She had no idea where to start with him. She had grown to love the rough hanyou. He was rude, brash, stubborn and all those other similar categories too but that didn't matter to her. She could see behind all of those to the sensitive guy that he could be when he wanted to be. She actually loved when he was mad at her and then turn around and be ever so gentle with her. It let her see a little more of him. She loved the way he fought as well. The way he would jump into battle without a plan and form one when he knew what the enemy was capable of. She loved the way his muscles rippled with power when he moved and even though he could squash her like a bug he would never touch her like that.

The only problem was Kikyo. He loved her more than Kagome but at the same time he despised her. She was his lover 50 years ago when she was actually alive. Then she sealed Inuyasha to goshinboku and sacrificed her life to ensure the shikon no tama's safety. Then an old witch brought her back to life using a clay body, her ashes, and the dirt from her gravesite. Now she was miserable. Her body can never be warm again. Her miko powers have diminished due to the fact that Kagome is her reincarnation and has half of her powers. Kikyo wishes to drag Inuyasha to the depths of hell with her and if it weren't for Kagome he would have already gone.

Sure, this was stuff that was widely know; just general stuff that anyone could pick up on. The thing that Kagome was mostly thinking about was the future. What would happen when the next battle happened? Who would be there? Who would get hurt? Who would have to protect her? Kagome often wondered about these things and she would often be in this very same spot.

This little beach was within walking distance from Kaede's village and within Inuyasha's hearing distance if she were to scream. Of course she had her trusty bow and arrows with her.

Kagome was brought out of her thoughts by a noise. It sounded like the whinny of a horse. She looked behind her to the tree line. She had always wanted to see a wild horse but never had a chance so she looked for the source of the sound. She kept very still so she wouldn't alert any animals to her presence.

After a few minutes she didn't see anything so she turned her attention back to the ocean only to hear it again, but this time it was louder, closer, and sounded like it was coming from somewhere above her.

Against the gray clouds she could barely make out a white figure but she could make out the flaming mane that belonged to none other then Entei and where Entei was, Hakudoshi was.

She quickly stood and grabbed her bow and an arrow out of the quiver. She got it ready but kept her bow and arrow lowered. She was smart enough to know that she shouldn't engage Hakudoshi while she was alone. She would be lucky if he just ignored her.

However, her plea was ignored. Entei was quickly descending about twenty feet from where she stood. As the horse got closer she could see the unmistakable figure of Hakudoshi. No surprise there. But what did he want? Did he want to fight?

The horse landed and the rider dismounted and stared at the young miko. She drew her bow taunt and aimed it at the child. It seemed like ages passed before either of them moved or said anything.

Surprisingly Hakudoshi was the one to speak first. "Why do you continue trying to defeat Naraku? What is the purpose of it?" His childish voice held so much curiosity that it surprised Kagome and she lowered her weapon.

"Because I must." Was her reply. Hakudoshi gave her an odd look proding for more of an explanation. "The world needs to be restored to the way it was before the jewel was broken. The fighting must end before everyone dies."

Hakudoshi must have accepted it as being good enough because he was silent for another moment before speaking again. "If you want the fighting to end why don't you just hand the jewel over to Naraku?"

Kagome blanched at the thought. "In order for the fighting to stop the jewel must disappear and the only way to do that is to use it for selfless reasons. The more you use it to gain power for yourself it becomes more and more tainted and it will just keep making everyone fight for their lives."

"So how will you get rid of it?"

That was something that Kagome had thought about dozens of times and still hadn't come up with a solution. Hakudoshi must have figured it out because before Kagome could reply he said, "I see. You honestly have no idea." Hakudoshi remounted Entei. "Will you know when the time comes?"

"I believe that if I was meant to know it will come to me when the time is right." The answer was very diplomatic.

"Hn." Hakudoshi kicked Entei's sides indicating that he wanted to leave and Entei complied, rising in the air.

Kagome watched for a moment before yelling, "Wait!"

The pair stopped and she felt the child's eyes boring into her. "Why did you come here and why aren't you attacking me?"

A moment passed before he responded. "Perhaps there has been a change in the tides."

He left, disappearing into the clouds, with that cryptic answer hanging in the air.

"Where is he?" Inuyasha came running towards her yelling. "I know he was here! I can smell him."

"Hakudoshi was here. And he left." Kagome told the excited hanyou.

"Did he hurt you? What did he want? The jewel shards right?" He bombarded her with questions.

"I'm fine. He just wanted to talk."

"Why would he want to talk to you?"

Kagome thought for a minute about how to reply. "The tides of war are ever changing." She turned and started walking back towards the village leaving a confused hanyou behind.

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Okay I know that was pretty short but it was an idea that I had and I'm just working on becoming creative enough again to continue writing. I hope you enjoyed!


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